Matt Winn's Steakhouse

Parking for Matt Winn's Steakhouse is in Section W19 with prominent signage to get to where you need to go. This is the nearest entrance to access the elevator bank that goes to the restaurant location on Level 6. We arrived early for our 6 PM Saturday dinner reservation and enjoyed briefly exploring the artwork and bourbon displays near the restaurant entrance prior to being seated. We were greeted and led through the beautiful oversized bar area (where the bartender was in the process of creating a smoked cocktail) and then ultimately seated near large floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the track. Several of the waitstaff acknowledged that we were celebrating a birthday this evening, which was a nice surprise. We placed cocktail orders (a Pink Star and a Bubbling Over) and received these and waters soon thereafter. We were able to take our cocktails and visit the outdoor balcony overlooking the track to watch the last few races of the evening at our leisure. Magical and delightful experience! When we returned to our table, we requested several items to start so that we could share and sample, including an appetizer order of shrimp and calamari fritto misto and a lobster crab cake, which arrived within a relatively brief amount of time. The lobster crab cake was luscious and the shrimp and calamari were delicately battered wjth a feathery, crispy,and well seasoned coating and accompanied with sides of an aioli and a Thai chili sauce. We also ordered a a classic Caesar salad with white anchovy filets to share, which arrived within a brief period, and was also delicious. We each ordered a 6 ounce petite filet, medium, and a shared order of whipped potatoes. A bread basket had also been brought to the table, which contained several types of rolls and rustic slices of crusty bread. The steaks were perfectly seasoned, perfectly cooked, and memorable. The potatoes were creamy and a perfect accompaniment for the steak juices. Finally, a slice of strawberry cake with a rich strawberry sauce was brought to the table as an unexpected birthday treat, including a lit candle to make a wish. A wonderful surprise and the tender cake and jammy fruit were a perfect finish to this wonderful meal. Restaurant has a lovely ambiance with decor and fantastically comfortable chairs with high backs, linen tablecloths, and spectacular views. Waitstaff were attentive, to the point of being a bit intrusive and intense, particularly the support staff with removing plates prematurely, hovering, and visiting the table too often. Support staff also appear to need further training with regards to dinner service, specifically with proper placement and removal of plates, to the point diners were having to move out of the way as they used "boarding house reach" and bumped arms, jostled shoulders, and kicked diner's chairs in their hyper focus to rapidly clear the table at times. Bathroom was clean and well maintained. Soap dispensers were less than functional. Water taps are not hands-free. Decor was lovely. We would be pleased to return to this restaurant in the future, as the food and views were stellar. Highly recommended for consideration on diners' short list when researching the multitude of current Louisville restaurants.

Matt winns steak house is a higher end steakhouse located in Louisville historic Churchill downs home of the Kentucky derby. Stopped in here to celebrate my birthday on a September night. Me and the wife made reservations and we walked in they had our table ready for us. We will start with the seven and ambience. Very beautiful views of the Churchill downs track which is a unique offer no other steak houses in the city can offer. The interior decor is that of high end bourbons. Is there anything more Kentucky then bourbon and horses? We got a window seat next to track. You can actually walk out side and sit in the grandstand seating to watch races. On our night we visited there were no races. But it was a beautiful day and night so we went out there to enjoy the views. Our service here was top notch. Super fast, friendly, and they made my "special occasion" feel as it should in being special. Food wise you are started with complementary bread, rolls and butter. Very tasty and fresh. Great way to open your taste pallets. Me and the wife did start off with an appetizer of Rock shrimp & calamari fritto misto which was very tasty and had a great flavor. It had the traditional red calamari red dipping sauce and a house made white sauce. Both very good and we each rotated bites trying each sauce. For entrées, I will have an 18 ounce bone in ribeye and my wife went with the 14 ounce New York strip. Our steaks were made and cooked exactly how we orders them and was very delicious. When you order a high dollar steak you never want to be disappointed and we certainly was not. This flavor carried its price tag correctly. For my birthday they did bring out a nice size chocolate mousse cake for me and the wife to share. Like everything else we had here. It was also delicious very rich and very tasty. Overall, this was a great experience with delicious food, amazing service and breathtaking and unique views, and set up that no other place in the city can offer. The backdrop of church was really cool. I can imagine on race days or even the Kentucky Derby how unique and awesome this place would be as it was really great when there wasn't even races. I would highly recommend this place to any steak lovers or anyone want to get a different view of historic Churchill Downs

We were punked, stay away from this establishment. Upon arriving we were greeted by a wonderful gate attendant who prepped us for "the best meal of our lives". This was the last positive thing about the experience. It was a Thursday night in March, and downtown Louisville was packed, but this restaurant was empty except for one other table. We were celebrating my father's retirement, and this seemed like the highest-end eatery we could find.Our waiters were visibly stressed out, so stressed that we all mentioned it, and we were afraid to ask them anything. Not sure what that was about.My father and I split the $160 powerhouse, ordered it medium rare. The steak was BLUE, I could barely cut it. I posted photos on social media to make sure it was not just me, and everyone said "blue". I could only chew a few bites of it. I love steak, and would have sent it back, but see above about the waiters. It was around now that we started to feel like this was a practical joke or something. Everyone else's food was mediocre, nothing worth mentioning. Not even close to Ruth Chris quality, and I consider that very run-of-the-mill, medium quality at best.My daughter ordered her favorite, the cheese plate. This was delivered without explanation. No idea what any of the cheeses were, and we had to ask if anything was spicy, the waiter looked annoyed and said he would have to go to the kitchen and ask. We didn't bother with the dessert menu, after what we had just witnessed, we cut our losses and ran out.When I mention this meal to my mom, she gets physically distressed and says it makes her sick to even think about it. It was probably the most she'd ever spent on fine dining, and she was beyond upset and disappointed at the whole experience. It is a real shame as the environment is amazing and we were ready for a top-notch experience. Instead, this is one of the worst meals in memory, and I hope I can forget it one day.

My partner took me here and it was such a fun elegant outing. You need a reservation to visit and when you arrive, they golf cart you in from the parking lot. We enjoyed our food and the service was very attentive. My partner really enjoyed his smoked old fashion so he got two of them. We also loved the shrimp & calamari appetizer. It was well seasoned and had great dipping sauces. We had a view of the race track from our table but the lights weren't on. We asked to go out on balcony to see it and the manager took us and shared details about the racetrack. It was a nice place to go for date night. We'd probably return for a few drinks as they're surprisingly cheap compared to the food menu.

This is our second visit to the steakhouse at Churchhill Downs. Make sure you find the right gate to get in. When you do find it they have a golf cart to take you to the elevator to go up to the restaurant. The interior is dimly lit and large glass and wood cabinets hold the treasure trove of highly sought after bourbons. We were promptly seated by the massive windows which overlook historic track. Our server Carla came to the table to introduce herself. She was friendly and outgoing. We quickly realized she was our server last time and she made the meal special then. I love that she paced the meal and nothing came out on top of anything else. She even asked as we were finishing appetizer if it was ok to bring out my salad. Highlights of the meal: the croutons on the Caesar salad. They were buttery and cheesy and almost melted in my mouth. I normally hate croutons and especially now that I have braces they are unbearable. These were AMAZING! My husband loved the drop biscuits. Our steaks were prepared to our liking and had great flavor. The roasted garlic on the top adds just the right amount of butteriness. I added scallops to my meal and they were well seasoned and sear was nice! We got to see the fireworks from Kentucky Kingdom at the end of our meal. Carla was super awesome and her personality really shows how much she enjoys her job. We laughed and joked. I gave her some menu suggestions and she told us that we made her night. What a great dinner.We did have a couple glasses of wine and a bourbon flight of their barrel picks. Good pours for the amount of money. Can't wait to visit again.

I love Matt Winn's, the food is always great and the service is on point. If you can get in on a race day the five stars jump to seven or eight. The bourbon list is second to none and the history in and around the restaurant makes the experience second to none. If you haven't been I would definitely recommend going and trying to out!

It is hard for me to give this iconic location a 3 star review but if it had not been for it being at Chruchill Downs and the service it might have been a 2 star. Four of us went for my birthday and the bill was $300 with tip. The location, service and atmosphere were top notch. Located on the 6th floor of Churchill Down's Millionaire row the views were fantastic. You could see the entire race track, Cardinal Stadium and the surrounding neighborhoods of the track in addition to downtown from the outside area which you have access to while dining. The atmosphere is old school, very elegant, classy old money feel. That was so cool. Seating by the windows make the views fantastic. Upon arrival we were greeted by an employee who knew it was my birthday and wished me birthday greetings. She then took us in a golf cart from the entrance to the elevators. It was nice service but also a way to keep us from wandering around the track. There is ample free parking right outside the entrance gate this is well marked. They asked to take our coats at the reception desk and seated us promptly. There were probably only 5 other parties in the entire restaurant the entire evening. Service was exceptional. Our waiter was kind, knowledgeable and accommodating. Another server keep our water glasses filled, removed plates, brought bread and was very efficient. We are big water drinkers and never did we have to ask for water. So the views, the atmosphere and the service made this a 5 star along with some of the food but overall we were not impressed with the food. We opted to share dishes. Bread was served first. There were brown butter honey rolls that were excellent. Hot, light and cooked perfectly. They also had a Focaccia bread. They were both really good, especially the rolls and enjoyed by all of us. They came with butter and an oil and vinegar dipping sauce. My son in law had a Raspberry and Thyme Sour Mocktail that he and my daughter said was good. We split a caesar salad and french onion soup. Soups was the favorite of all of us, serving piping hot with lots of cheese and bread topping and full of onions with a rich broth. It was a big bowl and was enjoyed by all. The caesar salad was OK. Nothing special.For main dishes we had the 10 oz Filet of Beef, An 8 oz Wagyu Short Rib served with wild mushroom and black truffle Risotto and Double Cut Pork Chop served with Bourbon brined, spiced apple chutney and sweet potato puree. The other three liked the filet but it was too char grilled for my taste. The inside was delicious and cooked as we ordered it. It was not served with any sides for $64. The Short Rib for $40 was as the server said a comfort food. Tasted a lot like my mom's pot roast, good and tender but not anything special. The risotto was good and filling. That was all we had left over to take home about half of that dish. The pork chop was dry and didn't have any flavor. If it had not been for the sweet potato puree, which was excellent not sure it would have been edible at least for me. We added two sides that they advertise as sharable and they were good size portions. The Mac and Cheese at $15 was one of my favorite dishes of the evening. The broccolini on the other hand was stringy and a bit tough. Not anyone's favorite. We ordered a Chocolate Nuts and Berries cocktail for a dessert drink, Chambord, Frangelico and heavy cream with dark chocolate shaving served over ice. It was pretty good but very rich. There was not a dessert cart which was disappointing. I always enjoy seeing my dessert choices. So we ordered a shortbread with cream and berries. It was a nice presentation but again nothing to write home about. The shortbread was OK, a bit dry and the berries a bit tart and I am more about sweet desserts. Last complaint is that other than the girl who rode us in the golf cart and the hostess my birthday was not acknowledged other than a candle on the dessert plate that we paid $12 or $15 for. I would have thought for a $300 meal for 4 they could have included a brownie and scoop of ice cream as a complimentary dessert. So although we had a great time celebrating and the atmosphere was wonderful I would not go back for the cost of the meal and the quality of the food overall.

It's upscale dining in Churchill Downs so I wouldn't expect anything less than phenomenal. And that it was! Cocktail and wine menu was perfect. I drank St. Laurent. It was perfect with my meal. Service was perfect. Ambiance was perfect. We were there with a group of friends.

We came here for my birthday dinner and it was amazing! First, the space is beautiful and very spacious. Our waiter was nice, but clearly new. The manager came around several times to adjust a few minor things. The food was amazing. We split the porterhouse and it was cooked perfectly. The birthday brownie left a lot to be desired, but we were so full that it didn't matter much.

Was so excited to try this restaurant out as we love Churchill downs but our New Year's Eve dinner was literally ruined by the terrible service. Our waiter Stephen was quite possibly the most miserable server I've ever encountered. Mumbling, barely visiting us or checking in, us having to ask for everything (including dessert menus which we got an attitude from him). Overall awful service. The busboy had more charisma and should be promoted. Not to mention there is an automatic 20% gratuity added on even for god awful service. A scam.The appetizer special we ordered was disgusting and inedible - who puts caviar on strawberries on oysters then dumps champagne on it? and when we complained about it he could not care less. Also!!! My ceaser salad WAS NOT CUT! Giant stalks of romaine were on my plate with anchovies smacked on top and dressing drizzled on. At a 5 star steakhouse I never thought I'd have to cut and toss my own salad. Who would've thought Red Lobster would do it better!! However the steak itself WAS fantastic and the smoked maple old fashioned was smooth as anything. But for the price point / skip this place or get a cocktail before a race and nothing more.